Who Planted These?

This  stand of red Monarda  is a very recent discovery.  We have two patches growing in planting beds but these were hidden in chest high weeds near our electric pole.  Bee balm spreads from new stems growing in contact with the ground and root runners just out of sight.  There is a lack of agreement here if seeds actually develop.  Many plants have two methods of providing for the next generation so I will need to look for seeds when these plants are cut back

When we moved here to live twenty-one years ago, there was no soil suitable for plants.  Stones of various sizes were more prevalent  than soil.  Our electric line is buried for a considerable distance from our pole to the house.  We filled the necessary trench using hand tools and it is likely that stones were not part of the fill.   Several days after the discovery of these stunning red flowers, Becky remembered moving some of our plants from our former Unadilla home to the site of our future home.  Only the Bee balm survived decades of neglect.

In John Burroughs' writings he touched on this native plant as an easier source of red for the garden than Cardinal flower.  His attempts to find Cardinal flower growing in the wild were seldom successful.  Keeping it alive in a garden is no simple task in our area.  We have been wrestling with Cardinal flower for years and have managed to keep this treasure alive while the Monarda survives here both in the garden and totally on its own.  It is easy to have huge plantings of these red flowers.  They also bloom earlier than Cardinal flower.

The major drawback to Bee balm is the powdery mildew that covers every surface on the plants after they flower.  It is ugly beyond description and we cut the plants back to the ground in a futile attempt to control this growth.  No one has cut back these long forgotten plants.  Their present appearance is beautiful.  We will check back to see if the powdery mildew  grows on these wild plants.

The other major attraction of these bright red flowers is their popularity with both humming birds and Clearwing moths.  We can only watch the humming birds from a distance while the Clearwings fly close to us and are not at all bothered by our close presence.  The other name for these creatures is Humming bird moth as their method of flying is easily mistaken for the look alike birds.

Our garden Monardas are just out of view so this picture really has no place in this post.   I suppose we could offer red Bee balm plants to anyone that can describe the location of the fifth deer in this photo.

Weeding Trilliums

Giant White Trillium is a flower from my youth.  Childhood memories dictated that they hold a prominent  place in our shade gardens.  Like many native wildflowers, considerable time is necessary for them to adjust to new surroundings.  This is an impressive old clump that is under attack from Trout Lilies.  This picture was taken after the area was cleared.  Chopped leaves now cover ground that was gently cleared of invaders.  More lilies will be weeded out.

When we first explored our newly purchased land twenty-five years ago, few flowering Trout Lilies were seen since stony ground limited their growth.  When moved to our shade garden that was built with deep stone free soil, they grew like weeds.  Their removal was necessary to protect the Trillium.

These removed weeds show just how serious their invasion will become.  Each white thick new root will grow a more deeply placed corm.  One single leaved nonflowering plant sports three such roots.  This single plant will become at least four by next year.  The only option was to make some clear ground between the two types of plants.

This piece of our new shade garden lies between our neighbors lawn and a stone lined path.  Placed in this ground that is not connected to the main part of the garden, ferns and Trout Lilies can compete for the open ground.  Each is expected to hold their own with this placement.  The lilies are approaching the end of their season with flowers just as the ferns are beginning to send up new growth.  Since both are stunning woodland plants, more of each will be transplanted here as new woodland soil is mixed.  Many other duties are calling for our attention now but for some reason this new garden has taken on an undeniable urgency.

Sweet, Sweet Summersweet

Many of the plants in our gardens remain there because of some personal connection between us.  Summersweet is just such a plant.  Daughter Amy and I were hiking in Minnewaska as part of a return trip to her life in NYC.  Unexpectedly, we were surrounded by an unbelievably sweet scent.  Late August does not feature many native plants in bloom so we left the trail and walked into the breeze that carried the aroma.  Soon we found a head high bush covered with tiny white flowers.  All that we took away was a carefully crafted mental image of the plant.  Our description allowed Becky to identify the bush.  It remains one of our treasures since it always carries me back to a special day spent with my daughter.  We  also displayed a certain amount of woodsman skill since we were able to return to the trail.

This plant has a downside as a garden subject.  This photo shows the dried remains of last year's flowers.  They will snap off easily and that job is pleasant if done during full bloom but the sheer numbers of dead stems demand more time than we have to spare.  Some are broken off each time we pause to sniff,  but many remain.

Ruby Spice was purchased at an end of season sale from a roadside stand.  These genetically altered flowers are intended to hide the golden colored pollen balls that stain the pure white natural flowers.  That they accomplish with attractive grace.  This bush was stunted by its summer spent in a small pot but it has recovered nicely.  It is written that these plants can be controlled by pruning.  We need to try that but cutting away perfectly healthy plant parts does not come naturally to us.  So our sweet bushes are expanding and closing off the path forcing us to brush against the open flowers as we pass releasing even more aroma.

Root suckers are a method that these plants use to create new growth.  The little guy in the path is well shaped and will definitely be placed in a pot.  If we can bring ourselves to nip off its top growth, the second plant would match the smaller plant.  We will have to find the perfect place to set out two similar plants that will soon grow into monsters.

Summersweet sends out suckers freely.  That source of new plants could supply goods for a plant sale.  Here again if time was in greater supply, we could do something new for us.  A respected mail order nursery offers this plant for sale at $27.99 plus shipping.

A comparatively short time ago, this root sucker plant was placed at one end of our dry stone loading dock  That structure is completely hidden by dark green glossy leaves and delightfully scented flowers.  Not all of our transplants now show such luxuriant growth.  One was placed on the north side of blueberry hill to delay new growth in an attempt to avoid late frost damage.  I failed to notice the clear signs of a deer trail that passed right next to the transplant spot.  A protective wire cage limits the deer grazing but they keep the bush trimmed close to the cage sides and top.  This plant must not be a deer favorite since they avoid the bushes in the garden most of the time.

Searching For Wild Pinxter

At this time of the year, garden work demands more of our time time than there are hours in a day.  Since the oppressive heat wave makes outside work impossible for us each afternoon, riding around in an air conditioned car seemed the better choice.  We have known about this location for pinxter growing wild for years but seldom visited here during the time of the flowers.  This land is owned by a former student but we never sought permission to take plants here.  There is something wrong in our minds about taking protected plants from the wild even with the landowner's permission.  Our need to uphold the supposed standards of a teacher in front of students made seeking permission to dig here impossible.  The view from the road is fabulous.  Seeing these plants made our day special.

As great as these pictures are, we were shocked to find that the road crew had severely impacted this once huge area of pinxter plants.  What had been a shallow roadside perpetually wet drainage area had been transformed with the digging of a deep wide ditch with steep sides.  This artificial and unnecessary ditch could not be safely crossed to get a close up view of the plants.  Too wide to leap across and no footholds available to descend into the ditch, we were forced to view these plants from road's edge.  Countless pinxter plants were destroyed during the digging of this ditch.  What had been a shallow wet area is now well drained and dry.

After spending many pleasant moments taking in the splendor of this native treasure, we traveled to a nearby village to visit the site where we did take wild plants.  We found that this area, adjacent to a village street, had been sheared of all brushy growth.  No trace of pinxter bushes could now be found in this area.  Actually, that made us feel better about taking plants from the wild.  The bushes that we took are alive and well at their new home.  Had we left then where they were growing, they would now be wood chips rotting alongside of the street.

In view of our rather extreme lack of recent rainfall, we have added our pinxters to the list of plants that get a sprinkling can of water every other day.  Their floral display is impressive and we carry water to them in the hope that they will set viable seed.  Taking plants from the wild can bring with it the responsibility to provide them with complete care.  They respond to a fresh drink by releasing a sweet cloud of inviting scent.